The Orre League
by Dr. Feelgood122191
Summary: Orre. Land of virtually no wild Pokemon and where Shadow Pokemon once ran rampant. Now, finally back on its feet, Orre is holding its own League. And Ash is never one to back down from a challenge.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Well, here's my attempt at a Pokemon fanfic.

First things first. Pairings have already been decided, just so all of you know. Ash/May, Brock/Lucy, James/Jessie, Butch/Cassidy, Wes/Rui. So, there you have it.

Also, Pokemon that we haven't seen from for quite some time will be making reappearances! That's right; Primeape, Lapras, Larvitar, Butterfree, even Haunter! Wait, is Haunter an actual word? It doesn't say that it's wrong on Microsoft Works Word Processor…

Here we go!

Disclaimer: If I owned Pokemon, Ash wouldn't be such an idiot, and would've scored with at least ONE of the females he has met on his trips.

Chapter One: Prologue

Ash groaned as he sat on his bed; ever since he lost to Tobias in the Sinnoh League Finals, all he had been doing was sitting at home, waiting for some news to come of a new region, and training his Pokemon. He constantly felt the need to move around; his legs just couldn't stand to sit still for too long. He could practically hear adventure beckoning to him. But where to?

Finally listening to his leg's need to move, Ash got up and headed downstairs. Checking the house, he concluded that his mother must be outside. Indeed, he found her taking care of the garden, along with her Mr. Mime, Mimey. She looked up at me, smiling as she did so.

"Hi there dear. Going somewhere?" she asked kindly.

That was one thing he loved about his mother; she was always there for him, no matter what. Usually with a kind word, too. Plus, she was a great cook, and, to his slight annoyance and embarrassment, always reminding him to wash his clothes.

"Probably going to Profess Oak's lab. Pikachu opted to stay there to train with Sceptile and Charizard, so I'm kinda lonely." He explained.

"Aww, well, just make sure you're home in time for dinner!" Came her cheerful reply.

Ash sighed as he walked towards the lab. He considered his options. Maybe he could compete in the Indigo League again? If nothing else, that could be his back-up plan.

Of course, wondering what to do with his Pokemon journey wasn't the least of his problems. Now 17, Ash had attracted the attention of many young women, it seemed. And not just his traveling companions; several girls around his age in his own hometown were constantly gossiping about him, fluttering their eyelashes at him and such. And when he had gone to visit Brock and Misty, there was that many more women to deal with. It was more than just confusing; he had no clue how to deal with them. Pokemon battles, sure, he could do that in his sleep. But when it came to dealing with the opposite sex…not so much.

"Pika!"

His closest and most trusted partner quickly ran up to him, launching itself onto his shoulder.

Laughing, Ash scratched Pikachu under its chin.

"Hey buddy. Miss me?" Pikachu cooed in agreement.

Now that he was in the vicinity of the lab, he looked out on the massive property. He noticed that there was quite a ruckus; there was a huge dust cloud, and it seemed to be getting closer…

Wait…was that…all of his Pokemon?

As the dust cloud got closer, he realized that it was indeed all of his Pokemon. And they were all apparently happy to see him.

Too happy.

"Gah!" Ash was quickly finding it hard to breath under the many bodies of his Pokemon, although thankfully none of the heavier Pokemon had joined in on the dog pile. But if Snorlax or Charizard decided that they wanted in on the fun, he was dead. He was already starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel due to Muk and Bayleef trying to nuzzle up against him (with the intense smell of Muk making breathing that much harder), so he was forever thankful when Bulbasaur rescued him with his Vine Whip.

"Thanks, Bulbasaur," Ash gasped, panting.

"Bulba," it smirked, obviously amused.

"Well, if it isn't Ashy-boy. About time you showed your face; your Pokemon were getting restless." an all too familiar voice called out.

Ash groaned good-naturedly at turned to his long-time rival, Gary Oak.

"Yeah, well I'm here aren't I?" Ash retorted.

"Late as ever." Gary shot back.

They glared at each other, then burst out laughing.

After Ash was done visiting his Pokemon (having to be saved several times from Muk and Bayleef), he sat down in a chair opposite of Gary in the lab, exhausted.

Gary smirked. "Already out of shape? C'mon, it's only been a couple of months."

Ash had half the mind to flip him the Pidgey, but decided against it. Instead, he chose to ask Gary the question he had been considering for awhile.

"Hey Gary…do you know any new Leagues that have opened up recently? I want to get out and about; if you think my Pokemon were restless, then what do you think I am?"

Gary's eyes lit up; before he could say anything, Ash quickly added, "Don't answer that."

Looking disappointed, Gary then adopted a look of concentration. "Hmm. Now that you mention it…I DID receive an invitation to go to a new region to research the Pokemon habitat…"

Rummaging in a desk drawer, Gary soon pulled out a piece of paper.

"Here it is. The Orre region. The region is infamous for its lack of wild Pokemon, and also for a couple of instances involving an organization called Cipher. I guess they are finally getting a League of their own 7 years after the Shadow Pokemon incident."

"Shadow Pokemon?"

"Yeah. I guess Cipher somehow created a machine or made a medicine or something in order to close off Pokemon's hearts, making them fighting machines. They'd even attack people. Fortunately, Cipher has been put down for good; 12 years ago, some trainer named Wes, who used to work for a team similar to Team Rocket, went renegade and with his partner Rui, they managed to save the Shadow Pokemon and defeat Cipher for good. Or so they thought. Then, 7 years ago, a younger trainer, a boy named Michael, got caught up in the next uprising of Cipher and managed to save more Shadow Pokemon, and this time put them down and kept them down. Thankfully, no Shadow Pokemon were transported out of the region, and now all research concerning Shadow Pokemon is now destroyed."

Ash whistled. "That's some story…but it sounds fun! You think I can tag along?"

Gary smiled. "I thought you'd ask that. Actually, I can take two people with me. I was going to ask you anyway, and as for the other one…who do you think should come?"

Ash frowned. His choices were limited; Misty was too busy at the Gym to come, and Tracey was too busy with his Pokemon Watching. Brock was now a Pokemon Doctor, and Dawn was on another adventure, or so he was told. Max had just started his own Pokemon Journey, and May…

Ash's frowned deepened. He had heard May was now home, but something had apparently happened on her Contest journey with Drew; since then, she had kept mostly to herself. Ash had no idea what had happened, but it couldn't be good. If only there was something to bring her spirits up…

Then something went 'ding!' in Ash's head. Of course! Some traveling might help her get her mind off of whatever had happened! Ash smiled.

"I think I know the perfect choice."

"Who?"

"May. I heard she was down in the dumps, so I figured that maybe she needed a vacation."

Gary shook his head; unlike Ash, he knew EXACTLY what was causing May to act the way she did. Nobody told Ash due to what he would likely do upon hearing it; Drew was lucky to escape with his life after Norman got a hold of him, and if Ash found him…

Then again…maybe Ash could pull her out of her depression. He had a knack for doing that kind of stuff.

"…All right. May it is. Now, who are you going to bring with you?"

Ash mulled it over. He hadn't thought about that. Pikachu, of course. But who else?

He looked out the window. He took note of each of his Pokemon, how all of them would glance occasionally in the direction of the lab, as if they knew he was deciding who was going with him on his next journey.

His eyes fell on Totodile. The Water Pokemon was dancing around Kingler, being chased around by Corphish, who appeared to be angry at it. They were both quickly stopped by Bulbasaur, who proceeded to whip them both repeatedly with Vine Whip.

He smiled. "I think Totodile and Bulbasaur will do nicely."

His eyes turned to another group of Pokemon. Quilava, newly evolved from Cyndaquil, was dozing off next to Snorlax. Noctowl, Swellow, Pidgeot and Staraptor were all in the tree above them, sizing each other up. Heracross was sucking sap from the tree, although Ash knew it would only be a matter of time before it went after the bulb on Bulbasaur's back.

"Quilava should come too."

He looked over a bit farther. Infernape, Torterra, Charizard, Sceptile and Buizel were all glowering at one another. It was comical to see the smaller Buizel try to look as impressive as Charizard, although Ash knew fully well how strong Buizel was. Not too far away from them, his herd of Tauros were grazing, with Gliscor gliding above them. Bayleef was currently bickering with Muk, more than likely about who he liked better.

His grin widened. He had found his team.

"Buizel and Bayleef will round off the team. Not bad, eh?"

Gary didn't look so sure. "You sure with that, Ash? I mean, I know how strong your Pokemon are, but that's not a well-rounded team. And don't you think you should at least take Charizard or Sceptile with you? Even Infernape or Snorlax?"

Ash shook his head. "No, I think I should use Pokemon who haven't been able to travel for awhile, not to mention those who are close to evolving."

Gary nodded. "I guess that makes sense. Are you going to be swapping out a lot, then?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah, most likely. Find out if Squirtle is going to be available, too. I think he should have the honor of going through this League with me. I want to see how powerful he's gotten since I've last seen him."

"Sure thing. You going to contact May?"

"Yeah. I'll do that now. Get everyone rounded up for me, okay?"

"Got it."

Ash went over to the phone. Dialing the number, he waited patiently, listening to the electronic voice saying "Dialing…dialing…dialing…". Finally, a clicking noise, and Ash was greeted by the face of Norman, May's father.

"Hello?"

"Hey Norman. Long time no see."

"Ash?" Norman asked, shocked. "How have you been? I haven't heard a thing about you since the Sinnoh League! What have you been up to?"

Ash laughed. "Well, I've been bored and sitting at home. I actually just got an invite to go to a new region with Gary. You ever heard of the Orre region?"

Norman nodded. "Yeah, I've heard about it. You going to challenge their new League?"

"That's the plan. We can also bring another person, and I could only think of one person who isn't busy right now, to the best of my knowledge. You think she'll be up for it?"

Norman shrugged sadly. "I don't know Ash…the incident with Drew has messed her up pretty badly…her Pokemon are extra-defensive about her nowadays. Just the other day I was almost roasted with a Flamethrower for knocking on her door!"

Ash frowned. Apparently the situation was worse than he had thought. Just what had Drew done to her…?

"Well, can you at least ask? I would hate for that extra invite to go to waste. Who knows, maybe this is what she needs to get back on her feet. I don't know exactly what happened, but moping around isn't going to solve it."

Norman's eyes widened. "Nobody told you what happened?"

"No, why?"

"…Maybe it's better if you get it from May instead of somebody else. But at any rate, I hope you're right. Maybe this is just the pick-me-up she needs. Hang on a sec."

Norman left the screen. Ash could hear footsteps, a knocking, a very loud bang and a yell, what sounded suspiciously like a Blazekin about to fry something, and a feminine voice that yelled "STOP!". Some murmuring, then more footsteps. Finally, a disheveled May came into view. Ash fought back the urge to give a comment on her less-than-stellar appearances, and instead worked his face into a bright smile.

"Hi May."

May gave him a small smile that almost made him cringe; just by her smile he could tell that she was nothing but a shadow of her former self.

"Hi there Ash. So good of you to call…"

Her voice just about made Ash cry. It was so…unlike May. What had happened to the young vibrant woman he had once known?

"It's nice to see you again, May. What have you been up to?"

"Oh, nothing. Just sitting at home…the usual, you know…"

The usual his ass. The usual for her would be more like training for her next Contest.

Forcing himself to keep smiling, he got down to business. "Ah. I see. So. It just so happens that I am traveling with Gary to a new region. It's called Orre. I'm going to compete in the League there. We can bring one more person with us, and it's been awhile since we've traveled together. You up for it?"

May frowned; Ash got the fleeting impression of a frowning skeleton. That gaunt look did not look home on May's face.

"What about everyone else…?"

"I can't tear Misty away from the Gym. Brock is getting his new career underway, Max is on his own journey, Dawn is doing her own thing, and Tracey is too immersed in his work. And you know me; if left to my own devices, I'll end up starving or something."

May smiled softly. Ash's smile widened slightly; it was a start. At least she was smiling at his jokes.

"So, what do you say? We can train together like we used to."

May seemed to ponder for a bit, then slowly nodded.

"Sure. I think my Pokemon are getting a bit antsy anyway. When do we leave?"

"Three days from now. Monday." Gary's voice made Ash jump.

"Oh, hi Gary. Monday, eh? I'll get a boat trip there tomorrow. See you then…" And with that, May hung up.

Ash sighed. "Wow. She sure has changed, hasn't she? I don't know what happened to her, but I hope this will bring her back to the way she used to be."

Gary nodded. "Yeah, I hope so too. Here," he handed Ash five Pokeballs, "Your team. They all seem really excited. You better go say goodbye to all of your other Pokemon; they all are anxious, now that you're leaving again."

Ash groaned again. He was going to be sore tonight…

A/N: And there you have it. Chapter one, complete! Next chapter: James and Butch make their appearance, an old friend shows up, and a mysterious new stranger appears!

Until then.

~The Doc


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Well, here's chapter two. Just so you all know, updates may be slow, due to my lack of internet at my new apartment. But hopefully I can go to my kinda-girlfriend's place frequently enough to update as much as possible, so there's that to look forward to.

One thing though; This will be an evolving fic! What that means is that Ash finally is going to go around and evolve ALL of his Pokemon! And yes, that also means Pikachu will eventually evolve. Deal with it.

Disclaimer: I want to own Pokemon Black and White. But I can't afford it. But the rights to Pokemon? Don't own those. I own copies of Red, Blue, Yellow, Gold, Silver, Crystal, Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Diamond, Pearl, Platinum, SoulSilver, and Colosseum, though.

Chapter Two: Enter James and Botch! ("It's Butch you idiot!)

Butch groaned as he looked at his traveling companion. Some might wonder as to why this might be; sure, while people DID tend to get his name wrong frequently, at least Cassidy had the decency to get his name right some of the time. Although he was quite sure she only got his name wrong to annoy him.

But no, this wasn't the case. No, he and Cassidy had been separated. The Boss had decided that he wanted to try putting somebody competent (Butch/Cassidy) with somebody…less so. Like Jessie and James.

He had been half hoping to be paired up with Jessie. At least they had been partners before, even if only for a short time. And she got his name right far more often than most people.

But it was not meant to be. Instead, he was currently stuck with James, much to his displeasure. Sure, Cassidy probably wasn't having a better time with Jessie; both of them were 'leader' material, and also rather hated each other.

To be honest, he didn't really hate James. He found him annoying, yes. But hate him? Butch didn't really think he hated anyone, honestly. Except for one of those brats.

Speaking of which, one said brat sighed as she walked out to greet them in front of the Cerulean Gym.

"What, no flashy entrances? No explosions, team mottos, nothing?" Misty asked.

"No, not this time. We've discovered that we can't really work together too well." Butch answered, gesturing to James and a feline Pokemon who had been paired up with them as well.

The fourth Cerulean Sister's eyes widened slightly. "They separated you two from Cassidy and Jessie?"

James nodded morosely. "Yep. Now it's me, Meowth, and Botch."

"IT'S BUTCH, YOU IDIOT!"

"Right right, whatever you say Butcher."

"Grrr…!"

Before Butch could do anymore, Misty had already thrown a red and white ball towards them.

"Okay, before my headache grows worse…Starmie! Use Hydro Pump to knock them flying!"

A purple star-shaped Pokemon appeared in a flash of white light. Aiming one of its many legs at the two hapless villains, a huge blast of water gushed out. The trio struggled briefly, before they felt their legs leave the ground.

"Dang it! James, why didn't you do anything?"

"This is hardly my fault, Biff. You could've just as easily done something."

"I was caught off guard! If Cassidy was here, she would've been able to stop that!"

"…Hey, you didn't say anything about me getting your name wrong."

"…WHAT? YOU MEAN YOU GET IT WRONG ON PURPOSE! WHY YOU-!"

Before Butch could finish what was sure to be the vulgar ending of his sentence, the three disappeared in a bright star with an accompanying 'DING!'. Misty groaned as she watched the odd trio vanish.

"Maybe you guys should get a job change…it would probably do you a lot of good."

Shaking her head, she recalled Starmie and went back inside the Gym. She had another battle to prepare for…

Elsewhere, Jessie and Cassidy, who had been arguing rather loudly, stiffened.

"Do you get the weird feeling that James and Butch got sent flying?" Cassidy asked, obviously unnerved.

Jessie nodded. "And Meowth, too. Come to think of it, do you hear a faint screaming?"

"Hey! Hurry it up, you two! We have a job to do!" Came the loud voice of their final teammate, Domino.

"Fine…" Both Team Rocket females muttered. If they had bothered to look up, they would've indeed seen their companions flying by.

"Hey! I see Jessie and Cassidy, Bob!"

"IT'S BUTCH YOU-Wait, Cassidy?"

"Meowth! I see them! Jessie!"

Unfortunately for the three of them, they could not control their flight patterns, and before long they were out of sight yet again.

Jessie and Cassidy both sneezed.

Ash smiled as he watched a familiar figure approach the docks. It was the day that he, Gary and May would set out for Orre. And their final member was approaching.

If you asked Gary, you would think that Ash had been told Christmas was coming early. Or that he had won the lottery. Or even that he had the chance to capture every legendary Pokemon that was currently known to man. The smile on his face was contagious. He must be really glad to see May again after all this time.

Gary knew better, though. Even if Ash wasn't consciously aware of it, it was rather obvious that he liked May more than as a friend. But Ash was rather dense in that area. Gary doubted that Ash would ever pick up on it or do anything about it.

'Oh well,' Gary thought as he watched Ash wave happily towards his soon-to-be-traveling-companion, 'He'll find out sooner or later. I just hope he doesn't screw anything up like he normally does…'

They quickly boarded the boat after some quick hellos, and after a short while, they were on their way.

May smiled slightly as she watched her Glaceon play with Pikachu; it was nice to see her Pokemon having fun again. Ever since her journey with Drew, she hadn't been quite the same. Well, emotionally and perhaps mentally, anyway; she was as beautiful as ever. She still had a hard time smiling, though. Her eyes strayed to Ash as he talked to Gary, obviously trying to pick up some information about Orre.

She knew she could trust Ash; even though her new inner voice was warning her that he would try to pull what Drew did, she banished the thought every time it came up. Ash was better than that. He hadn't tried anything at all when they traveled together in Hoenn, and he didn't seem too interested in the whole dating thing. He had so many things to do, after all, what with his Pokemon adventures and all. He probably wouldn't like to be tied down just yet, especially with his traveling.

Her thoughts were interrupted by said young man as he sat down next to her.

"Hey."

"Hi Ash," She replied, smiling slightly.

"We're going to be there soon. I guess there aren't too many wild Pokemon in Orre, so it'll be mostly battling Trainers and whatnot. And I guess the Contests here are fairly new, so you should have no problem wiping the floor with any competition." Ash said, smiling.

May felt butterflies in her stomach. Yes, Ash was nothing like Drew. Ash may not be full of compliments like Drew was, but he treated her like a human being, and wasn't afraid to argue with her if he thought she was wrong. Not to mention that he had saved her life several times, even putting his own at risk. Yes…she could trust him.

Screams assaulted everyone's ears. Gary, May and Ash all noticed that three bodies were quickly flying towards them, and dove out of the way just in time.

The dust settled. Everybody gathered around the pile that the formerly airborne bodies had formed. Three sets of eyes widened in recognition.

James, Butch and Meowth all groaned as they sat up, clutching their heads. Ash sighed, and squatted down next to them.

"Blasting off as usual, Team Rocket?"

Meowth groaned at the voice. "Shut your Meowth, twoip. We've had a rough day."

Butch glared at the trio, and James sighed.

"Get blasted off by one twerp, fall next to three of them. This is not our day…"

May raised an eyebrow.

"Which 'twerp' are you referring to? And what happened to your female counterparts?"

James and Butch glanced at each other, then sighed as they began to tell their story.

An hour later, Ash gave them a look of almost pity.

"So, your boss wasn't satisfied with your work, and decided to put you two and Meowth in a team, with Jessie, Cassidy and that one Team Rocket member that tried to capture Mewtwo and all of the clone Pokemon?"

"That's the gist of it. By the way, that tomboy twerp says hi." James said.

"Misty? You guys were blasted off by her?" Gary asked.

Three heads nodded. Ash sighed.

"Well, you three landed on a boat to Orre. I don't know what you guys plan to do, but please don't bring any trouble to this region. They already had it bad enough with Cipher and all."

The Team Rocket trio grimaced.

"We aren't stupid. If Cipher got taken down twice-and by a mere kid the second time!-what makes you think that the three of us are going to try anything? We aren't nearly as successful as they were. We wouldn't stand a chance." Butch said, his two companions nodding in agreement.

"So what are you going to do?" Gary asked.

"Well, I suppose I could go visit one of my summer homes…I'm sure I could stay there awhile."

Five sets of eyes trained themselves on James. He blinked. "What?"

Ash stared. "How many 'summer homes' do you have?"

James looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, we have several scattered around in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh. We have one in Orre, and we even are going to build one in Unova."

"Unova?" Gary asked.

"Yeah. You guys haven't heard of it?"

"Obviously not," Butch growled. "Why don't you use your vast amount of money to help Team Rocket? You would be so much more successful!"

James shook his head, and Ash flinched.

"If I did, I'd have to marry someone who I don't like…Jessebelle."

"Who's that?" May asked.

"His fiancée. She looks just like Jessie, although she's a lot worse than she is. Trust me, you never want to meet her." Ash said.

"You've met her?" Gary asked.

"Twice, actually. I feel sorry for James, to tell the truth. His parents are dead-set on him marrying her, and that's why he ran away and joined Team Rocket."

Butch blinked. "Wow, I never knew you had that kind of back-story, James."

James shrugged. "You never asked."

Just then, a voice was heard from overhead.

"We are now arriving at Gateon Port…Please make sure you have all of your luggage and Pokemon. Have a nice day!"

The group looked at each other.

"Where's yer place at, anyway?" Meowth asked.

James frowned. "I think it's in Phenac City, a beautiful oasis in the otherwise harsh desert climate."

"Phenac City, huh…that's where the first Gym is at." Gary said.

"In dat case, why don't we all travel together?" Meowth said. Seeing their suspicious looks, he quickly waved them down. "You guys are going dere anyway, right? It'll be safer if we go wit ya. For all o' us." He said.

"…He has a point. Besides, James should know the way around here, anyway. Better we go with him and make it there than get lost and die in the desert." Ash said. Gary looked surprised at his unexpected insight; when did Ash get this smart?

Everyone else had similar looks, but decided against commenting on it.

One of the crew members interrupted any further conversation when he ushered them off the ship.

"Wow. It's rather busy around here, isn't it?" Ash asked as they walked towards the Pokemon Center.

"Well it IS a port town, Ash. Of course it's gonna be busy." Gary responded, looking around the area.

"Ah, Gateon Port…it's been awhile. Not much has changed." James said wistfully.

"…Y'know James, one of these days yer gonna sit down an' tell us just how many places you've been." Meowth said.

"You don't think that we're going to get arrested, do you? I don't know if they've heard of Team Rocket here…" Butch said, obviously concerned.

"Well as long as you guys don't do anything stupid, you should be fine." Ash said as they walked into the Pokemon Center. However, he met resistance as he walked straight into something.

"Whoa!"

"Oof!"

Ash stumbled back, and a young girl fell flat on her rear from her impact with Ash.

"Ow! Jovi hurt herself." The young girl said. She looked up. "Sorry, Jovi wasn't looking where she was going."

"No, I should've been more aware of my surroundings. Sorry," Ash said.

"Oh! Jovi knows you! You were in the Sinnoh finals! Ash…Ketchup!" Jovi exclaimed.

Everyone face faulted.

"Now you know how I feel," Butch muttered.

"At least she got part of your name right." Gary said.

"Heh heh, she's so cute." May cooed.

"Huh? Did Jovi say something wrong?" The girl presumably called Jovi asked.

"It's Ketchum, not Ketchup." Ash said.

"Oh! Jovi is sorry!" Jovi said, obviously horrified at her mistake.

"It's not that big of a deal," Ash shrugged.

"Speak for yourself." Butch scowled.

"What do you mean, Biff?" James asked innocently.

"You're lucky there's a kid there." Butch snarled, glaring at his fellow Rocket member.

"Oh no! Jovi needs to get home, otherwise Mother and Big Brother will get angry with Jovi again! It was nice seeing you!" Jovi said, hurrying off.

As soon as she was out of sight, Butch launched himself at James. "THE NAME IS BUTCH YOU INCOMPETENT-!"

Ash, Gary, May, Pikachu and Meowth all sighed before pulling the two apart.

"C'mon guys, not here. You're gonna get us kicked out." Gary said, putting his fingers to the bridge of his nose.

"Is there a problem?" Came a voice. They all turned. A woman in a nurse outfit had approached them.

"Huh. I was expecting a Nurse Joy." Ash said.

The woman laughed. "Yeah, I get that a lot from tourists who have traveled here from the other regions. My name is Samantha. I'm Gateon Port's 'Nurse Joy'. Nice to meet you." She said, bowing her head slightly.

"I'm Ash."

"Gary."

"May."

"James."

"Butch."

"Pika!"

"Meowth!" Meowth quickly got down on all fours. He didn't want any weirdoes trying to experiment on him like they had before due to his unique ability to speak the human language and walk around on two legs.

"Well, you appear to be a bit of a motley crew. Do you need beds for the night?"

"Yes please. We also need a map of the region. James here has been here before, but it'd be nice to have something that is a bit more recent to rely on." Gary said.

"Sure thing. Just come here for a moment."

Gary went off with Samantha. Ash turned to May and engaged her in a conversation about Contests. Butch just stood there, arms folded.

James wandered around the small building, reminiscing. Until he repeated Ash's actions from earlier.

"Ah!"

"Hey!"

James hit the floor. The person he walked into turned around.

James quickly spoke. "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention-"

"No, it's fine. It was an accident. You okay?" The stranger held out his hand, which James took gladly.

"Thanks." They both turned away before both freezing. Slowly, they turned around.

James' eyes widened, and the man's squinted eyes shot open in shock.

"You're-!"

A/N: Hmm. Wonder who the squinty-eyed man is? …Actually it should be obvious.

Until next time.

~The Doc

Next time: An old friend appears! Ash gets into his first Orre battle! Butch's name is continually gotten wrong! And who's this guy with the motorcycle?


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Well, here's chapter three. For those of you who are wondering what Drew did to May…well, you'll find out, okay? Just be patient.

I would love to say that I was only late with this update due to my lack of internet at my apartment, but that is no longer the case. I am back in my parent's house-with internet-and am now on bad terms with one of my best friends. Which sucks. But I suppose that's life. In any case, I'll try to keep updates coming ASAP.

Now that that's outta the way, let's go!

Disclaimer: Don't own Pokemon.

Chapter Three: An Old Friend

* * *

"Y-you're-!" James said, astonished. He was met with a glare from the person who he had run into…or at least, what appeared to be a glare. The squinty eyes made it hard to tell.

"…What are you doing here, James?" Brock asked, clearly annoyed. "If you're here to steal Pokemon, then I'll show you no mercy."

"N-no! Nothing like that! My new partner and I got blasted off onto a boat with the twerp and twerpette, and then we ended up here, and now we're going to my summer home, and-"

"Whoa whoa whoa. Hang on. Twerp and twerpette? Who do you mean by that?"

"Ash and…May, I think." James responded, frowning as he tried to remember. After calling them 'twerps' for so long, it was hard to remember their exact names.

"!" Brock's eyes widened, or at least somehow formed to make them look surprised. Last he heard, May was in low spirits and had no desire to travel. Now she was with Ash again?

'Interesting. I wonder how Ash was able to convince her to come with…I guess I should've figured that Ash would've been here the second he learned about a new League. Well, it looks like it's going to be like old times…Minus Max and with a couple of stragglers.' Brock thought. Then, another thought occurred to him.

"Wait, what do you mean new partner? Did they separate you and Jessie?"

James visibly drooped. Brock felt a touch of sympathy for the man.

"Yeah…Now I'm stuck with Biff-"

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO SAY IT? THE NAME IS BUTCH!" Came Butch's voice out of nowhere. Brock chuckled.

"Do you do that on purpose?"

James shrugged. "Usually. Other times I just don't care enough."

"I take it Cassidy's with Jessie, then?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Meowth's with us, though, so I'm not too lonely."

"Mm. So where is Ash, anyway?"

"Talking to the female twerp about Contests, I think. I was just wandering around since I've been here before."

Brock raised an eyebrow. "…How many summer homes do you have here?"

James flinched. "Is it really that obvious?"

"Well, looking back on how many times we've encountered one of your summer homes on our journeys, it's not too hard to see a pattern, James. That, and I doubt Team Rocket has been to the Orre region yet. Until now, anyway."

"Ah. Well I suppose there is that. In any case, I take it you want to see the twerps?"

"Ash and May, James. We at least have the decency to call you by your names instead of collectively as 'Team Rocket' from time to time."

"Oh, fine…Ash and May."

"Good. And yes, I would like to see them."

With that, James turned around and started to walk back to where he came from, with Brock in tow.

* * *

Butch fidgeted nervously. He kept glancing about him, trying to hide the big red R on his shirt. Honestly, why hadn't he brought along another change of clothes? He was standing out too much; with his luck, somebody would recognize the R for Team Rocket, then he and James would be sent to jail. Again.

His movements finally caught the attention of Ash, who raised his eyebrows.

"What's up?" He asked.

"Nothing at all!" Butch snapped irritably. Noticing the look on Ash's face, he sighed. "Sorry kid. Just a bit worried about the police and all. I don't know if they've heard of Team Rocket out here, but if they have, they're surely going to notice the R on mine and James' shirts before too long. They stick out quite a bit, you know. And I really don't feel like going back to jail again. Especially in a place like this."

Ash actually pitied Butch for once. "It must be tough once you've done the things you have. Always in paranoia about the law. And now that you've started, you can't stop…right?"

"Something like that. The Boss doesn't really let members just drop off whenever they feel like. It's kinda like a life sentence; you join for life, or…well, I don't really want to imagine what he does to those who quit. It can't be pleasant, I can tell you that much."

"It sounds like it. …Say, Bob-"

"IT'S BUTCH!"

"Sorry, sorry. Butch, then. Why did you join Team Rocket? I know James did it to get away from his parents and be free, and Jessie did it to move up in life. But why did you?"

"Hmph. Nosy kid, aren't you? I had my reasons. That's all you need to know."

Any further conversation was interrupted as a voice called out. "Ash!"

Ash and Butch turned. James was approaching them, as was-

"Brock!" Ash cried. They high-fived.

"What are you doing here, Brock? I thought you were going to become a Pokemon Doctor." Ash said, clearly surprised in a pleasant way.

"Well, I am. I have to do a lot of research, though, and I also needed to understand how to handle Pokemon from different environments. As such, I came out here to study the habitats of the few Pokemon that live out here. I take it that you're here for the League?"

"You know me too well. Of course I would go anywhere that has a League." Ash replied, grinning.

"Brock? Is that you?" Came May's voice. They all turned to see the brunette approaching them. Ash frowned. Where had she got off to? He was talking to her only minutes before he began talking to Butch…

A voice in his head told him not to think about it too much. Girls were just weird like that. It would give him more than just a headache trying to solve any of it.

"May! Long time no see!" Brock said, smiling kindly at the younger woman. "Nice to see you again. How have you been?"

"Oh…I've been doing fine. Just getting back into my Contest career." May returned his smile. It was almost like old times. Now if only Team Rocket and Gary weren't here, and Max was with them, it could almost be like they were traveling in Hoenn again. A very dry and desert-like Hoenn.

"Well, good to hear it. I know you'll do well." Brock said, still smiling, although it looked kinda forced to Ash, who frowned.

'He's probably thinking about whatever it was that Drew did to her…Am I the only one who doesn't know the exact details?' He thought, idly wondering if it was that had caused May so much pain. He then shook his head mentally. 'I guess if she really wanted me to know, she'd tell me. Maybe there's a reason that I'm the only one being kept in the dark. Maybe she's afraid that I'll go find Drew and finish the job that Norman started…if he didn't finish it already.' Ash chuckled slightly at that. Yes, he had no doubt that whatever Drew did, he paid for it dearly once Norman caught up to him.

* * *

Gary returned soon after, having finished his business with Samantha. After briefly catching up with Brock-whom Gary did not seem surprised to see, Ash noticed-they found their rooms and began to unpack.

Ash was still chuckling as he let out all of his Pokemon; according to Gary, all of the Pokemon Nurses in Orre were just like the Nurse Joys back in all of the other regions-they all were named Samantha, and looked almost identical. He had no doubt that Brock could tell them apart, which amused him even more.

His thoughts were interrupted when Bayleef tackled him to the ground, intent on snuggling with him for the rest of the night…or for the rest of their lives, if she could get away with it. Totodile started dancing around them, obviously thinking that Bayleef smothering Ash was some new game that was currently not known to it. Bulbasaur sighed, and Buizel face palmed. Quilava merely glanced at the commotion, before curling back up to take its nap.

As Pikachu, Buizel and Bulbasaur tried-in vain-to get Bayleef and now Totodile off of Ash, giggling could be heard from the doorway.

May watched the scene in amusement, happy that all of Ash's Pokemon were still as lovable as ever. She did notice that Bayleef glared at her momentarily for some reason, before she went back to resisting everyone's attempts to get her off of her beloved Trainer.

May's Pokeballs shook slightly, before light engulfed the room. Blazekin, Skitty, Glaceon, Venusaur, Squirtle, Cyndaquil, Beautifly and Munchlax had all come out, with most of them looking at Ash's predicament with amusement. May smiled; it was good to be a Gym Leader's daughter sometimes. She could get away with having more than six Pokemon. Of course, since she was not really a battler anyway, she could've probably gotten away with it anyway, but still.

After Gary had found Samantha again-and explained to her about them picking up a new bunkmate-he and Brock filed into their room. Hearing the laughter-and obvious gasps for air that were coming from Ash-they both smiled fondly. Yes, perhaps this trip would snap May out of the funk she was in. Then they both paused to wonder why they had called it 'funk', and then to wonder why they were both thinking the same thing-and even then, HOW they knew that they were thinking the same thing.

* * *

The author smirked at them. "Dance my puppets, DANCE! MWAHAHAH!"

He was promptly smacked upside the head by a million and a half fan girls who had come to take Gary away.

* * *

Butch and James, on the other hand, were both already almost in deep slumber. Chimecho, who James had picked up from his grandparents just before he and Jessie had gotten separated, was wrapped comfortably around his head as he slept. Butch was mumbling in his sleep, most of which involved various getting his name wrong, and what names he was going to change his to.

Across the hall from Ash's and May's room (who had opted to sleep in the same room, which, oddly, nobody seemed to find weird), a man with spiky white hair looked up. He was clearly tanned from spending a long time in the desert, and he had a white mark that crossed right under his eyes. His blue trench coat was currently off, revealing his casual outfit underneath-which no one still living had ever seen him in. Well, the one exception snuggled up closer to him.

* * *

"Noisy bunch, aren't they?" Rui asked, smiling as she looked at the auras of the people in the rooms across from them. She had always been able to see auras, ever since she was a kid. That especially made her invaluable when she and her boyfriend had thwarted Cipher all those years ago.

Wes grunted. He was a man of few words, unless Rui was involved, of course. His long-time partners, Espeon and Umbreon, both slept at the edge of their bed.

"Hmhmhm…Come on Wes, don't look so grumpy. If you frown all the time like that, you'll turn ugly."

He raised an eyebrow. "I've always looked like this. You know that. And you have yet to say I'm ugly. I think I'll take my chances."

She giggled as she planted a kiss on his cheek. "Whatever you say, dear."

A/N: Whew…that actually took a lot longer to write than I thought it would. Got Wes and Rui introduced in this chapter, got Brock in, some character development for Butch…I'd say I did well.

Okay, I lied about Ash having his first battle. But it will happen next chapter, for sure. For those of you who have played Colosseum and Gale of Darkness, prepare for the most lovable character from both games to return! And maybe even have a huge part in the story!

Alright, so to answer a couple of things that a couple of reviews had said. First of all, japaneserockergirl. I thank you for your review, and I will try harder in the future to get setting descriptions down a lot better. I always had trouble with things like that, and I also like the way how you were polite about it. But as for how they were going to train their Pokemon…well, in the Colosseum and Gale of Darkness, to make up for the lack of wild Pokemon, they had trainers every which way. And in the show, Ash typically battles other trainers to train, so that's what I'm going off of. And I totally agree with what you say about the anime; if the show didn't have so many fillers (and if I would've had a T.V station that aired Pokemon at the time), I probably would've continued watching after Kanto. And Ash needs to grow up. Seriously.

And now, for Vitallnfo, I thank you too for your kind review. But I should tell you that Orre is NOT a fan-made region. Orre was not in the show, but from two games: Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness. Cipher and the whole Shadow Pokemon thing that I explained (roughly) in the first chapter were present in both games as well.

I must thank all of the rest of you who reviewed as well (Oliviakd, Blue-Red-Ninja, Hakkyo no Yami, Vitallnfo [for a !SECOND! review], knownobody, gabrielsolomon, and Writer of the Void). I appreciate the encouragement, and I will try to get up another chapter ASAP!

And is it just me, or does anyone else here who writes Pokemon fanfiction always seem to forget to put the Pokemon in? I always seem to forget about them and focus on the humans more. I really need to work on that...

Next time: Afros and disco music ahoy! A former Team Snagem member reveals himself to the group! Ash has his first battle (for real this time)! And what's eating Gellert Grape?

Until next time!

~The Doc


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